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As Britain tries to absorb the shock of 7/7 some voices are urging that it would amount to the appeasement of the terrorists. Experience, however, shows the appeaser becomes a more attractive target for the terrorists. The appeased terrorist concludes that, having won a battle, he should press for victory in his war against a weakened adversary.

Appeasing terrorists was tried by President Francois Mitterrand in the 1980s and made France the most-targeted Western country for a decade.

Mitterrand launched his appeasement weeks after becoming president in 1981. He released all the 31 convicted terrorists in French prisons and lifted the ban on pro-terrorist publications and illegal radio stations.

He also abolished the State Security Court, set up to deal with terrorism, describing it as a Nazi-style outfit. He let the Basque terrorists of ETA use French territory as a base against Spain and allowed various Palestinian groups and The Irish Republican Army (IRA) to operate in Paris.

Mitterrand feted Yasser Arafat, then regarded as the godfather of terror, and travelled to Cyprus to court Libya's dictator Muammar Gaddafi, the principal paymaster of international terror at the time. Mitterrand's appeasement included the Khomeinist regime in Tehran and led to an exchange of ambassadors and high level contacts.

The French leader emphasised the ideological propinquity of his Socialist party with "other radical movements", meaning terrorist groups, that were also "striving for justice". At one point Mitterrand even talked of the "common roots" of the French Revolution and the Khomeinist take-over in Iran.

American plan

In 1984 Mitterrand's policy led him into vetoing an American plan for joint G-7 action against international terrorism. In a meeting with the then US vice-president George W. H. Bush, who headed a special anti-terrorism unit created by US president Ronald Reagan, Mitterrand argued that the only way to deal with the threat was to "address the grievances" which were "often caused by Western policies".

Not surprisingly terrorist of all denominations began to see France as a safe haven.

Abu Nidal and Carlos visited Paris for business and pleasure. Emad Mughniyeh, a Lebanese terrorist on the American "most wanted list" dropped in for shopping holidays. Ayatollah Ruhallah Khomeini sent his nephew, one Masoud Hendizadeh, to set up a terror headquarters in Paris. The Islamic Embassy in the French capital became the centre of operations for Europe.

Later, when French police issued an arrest warrant for Vahid Gorji, the man who headed the Iranian terror headquarters in Paris, Mitterrand arranged for him to be put on the first flight to Tehran to escape prosecution.

Payback for Mitterrand's policy started with the assassination of General Rene Audron, a senior member of the French defence ministry in 1985. A few months later Paris was hit by a series of bomb attacks, including on two major department stores in which 35 people were injured on Christmas eve.

In February 1986, a major shopping arcade and a hotel in Champs Elysees were bombed. The wave of attacks continued with the bombing of the Forum des Halles and the attempted blowing up of the Eiffel Tower.

By March 1986, France was the victim of a full-scale terror campaign, including a suicide operation in which two Arab terrorists were killed in the Champs Elysees. Attacks on the Paris metro, the Orly Airport, and shopping centres created a climate of fear. Dozens of other plots, including an attempt to derail a high-speed train, were nipped in the bud by the police.

Throughout the Mitterrand appeasement a total of 93 people were killed and more than 800 wounded in terrorist attacks in France. To these must be added 17 Iranian dissidents who were killed by hit-squads from Tehran.

But this was not all. Fifty-three French paratroopers were killed in a suicide attack in Beirut in 1983. Also in Beirut a pro-Syrian group assassinated France's ambassador while a Khomeinist gang held the French ambassador in Tehran hostage for several days.

A total of 37 French citizens were held as hostages in the Middle East, and two murdered in cold blood, by the same terror groups that Mitterrand had tried to appease.

France is not alone to have tried appeasement and failed. Algeria, Egypt, Germany, Saudi Arabia and, more recently, Spain have had similar experiences. The British should know that any appeasement of terrorists could put them in an even greater danger.

Iranian author Amir Taheri has written ten books on the Middle East and Islam. He is a member of Benador Associates.

Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, today blamed Western interference overseas for the growth of Islamic extremism and for creating the conditions to drive terrorists to commit acts such as the London bombings.

Asked about the causes of Islamic fundamentalism and violence, Mr Livingstone said that the meddling of Western governments in the Middle East to protect oil supplies was a contributing factor.

"I think we have just had 80 years of Western intervention in predominantly Arab lands because of the Western need for oil," the Mayor told BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning.

"We have propped up unsavoury governments, we have overthrown ones that we didn’t consider sympathetic."

Mr Livingstone did not mention the Iraq war as a specific grievance for Islamic militants but pointed to a longer incubation of anger.

His comments prompted a swift rebuttal from Downing Street. Tony Blair's official spokesman said that the Prime Minister "fundamentally" disagreed with the Mayor's analysis of the causes of terrorism.

"The Prime Minister and Ken Livingstone have different views of the world and that remains the case," said the spokesman.

"Equally, however, we recognise that Ken Livingstone has provided, as an elected official in London, a lead to the people of London at this tragic time - at the same time as he expresses views which we fundamentally disagree with."

Mr Livingstone's views on the rise of Islamic extremism have been closely examined since the July 7 attacks because of his perceived sympathy in the past for attacks by Palestinian terrorists in Israel.

Today, the Mayor condemned all suicide bombings but suggested that the "double standards" exhibited in Western foreign policy towards the Middle East had given rise to enormous feelings of antipathy among Islamic extremists.

"I think the particular problem we have at the moment is that in the 1980s the Americans recruited and trained Osama bin Laden, taught him how to kill, to make bombs and sent him off to kill the Russians in Afghanistan and they didn’t give any thought to the fact that once he had done that, he might turn on his creators," he said.

"I have not the slightest doubt that, if at the end of the First World War we had done what we promised the Arabs, which was to let them be free and have their own governments, and kept out of Arab affairs, and just bought their oil, rather than feeling we had to control the flow of oil, I suspect this wouldn’t have arisen.

"I have watched Western governments, so terrified of losing control of their fuel supplies, that all my life there have been interventions in the Middle East by Western governments.

"It is the double standards that flow from that. We initially welcomed Saddam Hussein to power, our intelligence services gave him lists of trade unionists and communists - as did the CIA - that we wanted killed, and he then turned on us.

"You have also got this running sore of the Palestine Israeli conflict. A lot of young people see the double standards, they see what happens in Guantanamo Bay, and they just think that there isn’t a just foreign policy," the Mayor said.

Mr Livingstone's comments come two days after a report published by a leading foreign policy think tank said that Britain's junior role in the US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan had left it vulnerable to attack by Islamic militants.

Yesterday the Prime Minister dismissed the Chatham House report and warned that the logic behind it was the same as that used by extremists themselves.

"Of course these terrorists will use Iraq as an excuse. They will use Afghanistan," Mr Blair said at a news conference with the President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai.

"September 11 of course happened before both of these things, and then the excuse was American policy, or Israel. They will always have their reasons for acting," he said.

Key points
• Ken Livingstone claims terrorist attacks fuelled by UK foreign policy
• Public expression of these views breaks political truce since attacks
• His views shared by Labour back-benchers and many members of public

Key quote
"You've just had 80 years of western intervention into predominantly Arab lands because of the western need for oil. We've propped up unsavoury governments, we've overthrown ones we didn't consider sympathetic" - KEN LIVINGSTON, SPEAKING ON RADIO 4

Story in full KEN Livingstone, the mayor of London, yesterday stunned even his political opponents by claiming the terrorist attacks on the city a fortnight ago were motivated by British foreign policy in the Middle East.

Shattering the political truce that had emerged since the four bomb attacks, Mr Livingstone said resentment was being fuelled as a result of the treatment of detainees by United States troops at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. He went so far as to suggest the English public would themselves resort to suicide bombings if placed under certain circumstances.

While his remarks were condemned by politicians and diplomats, they echoed private criticism among Tony Blair's enemies on Labour's back-benches.

When asked what he thought had motivated the four suicide bombers who struck in London on 7 July, Mr Livingstone traced it back to Britain's historic role in the Middle East.

"You've just had 80 years of western intervention into predominantly Arab lands because of the western need for oil. We've propped up unsavoury governments, we've overthrown ones we didn't consider sympathetic," he told Radio 4.

"In the 1980s, Americans recruited and trained Osama bin Laden, taught him how to kill, to make bombs, and set him off to kill the Russians and drive them out of Afghanistan."

The United States, he said, was reaping its own harvest as "they didn't give any thought to the fact that, once he'd done that, [bin Laden] might turn on his creators".

He was careful to say that his criticism of British and US foreign policy did not amount to sympathy for the bombers. "I do not support any suicide bombings. I don't ever recall supporting an act of violence," he said. But he made it clear that he regarded suicide attacks as the natural result of political decisions. "Under foreign occupation and denied the right to vote, denied the right to run your own affairs, often denied the right to work for three generations, I suspect that if it had happened here in England, we would have produced a lot of suicide bombers ourselves.

"A lot of young people see the double standards; they see what happens in Guantanamo Bay, and they just think that there isn't a just foreign policy."

The rise of Islamic extremism across the world was, he said, the product of British policy to maintain a presence in the Arab world after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.

"I have not the slightest doubt that if, at the end of the First World War, we had done what we promised the Arabs, which was to let them be free and have their own governments, and kept out of Arab affairs, and just bought their oil, rather than feeling we had to control the flow of oil, I suspect this wouldn't have arisen," he said.

While Mr Livingstone has voiced such concerns before, his views were thought to have moderated since he was accepted back into the Labour Party last year.

Downing Street was taken aback by Mr Livingstone's outspoken remarks - but No 10 did not criticise him, praising his performance in the aftermath of the attacks a fortnight ago.

"The Prime Minister and Ken Livingstone have different views of the world and that remains the case," said a spokesman.

"Equally, however, we recognise that Ken Livingstone has provided, as an elected official in London, a lead to the people of London at this tragic time - at the same time as he expresses views which we fundamentally disagree with."

However, Zvi Heifetz, Israeli's ambassador to London issued a furious statement. "It is outrageous that the same mayor who rightfully condemned the suicide bombing in London as 'perverted faith', defends those who, under the same extremist banner, kill Israelis," he said.

David Davis, the shadow home secretary, said he denounced any attempt to empathise with the suicide bombers - whether from Mr Livingstone or Islamic clerics.

But the mayor's comments reflected the views of some Labour rebels, who have so far refrained from using the bombings to attack the Prime Minister in the House of Commons.

"After a few weeks, it will be hard to conclude that Britain is not at more risk because of the war the Prime Minister led Britain into," one MP said yesterday. "And it will be hard not to conclude that he bears some of the blame."

There is increasing evidence that the British public link the London attacks with the Iraq war. An ICM opinion poll two days ago showed that two-thirds believe Mr Blair bears some responsibility for the terrorist attacks on the capital.

The Prime Minister has vigorously rejected any such suggestion - and he reminded the Commons yesterday that 26 countries had faced attacks by al-Qaeda.

Mr Livingstone, re-elected as the official Labour candidate to be London mayor last summer, is combining his criticism of British foreign policy with a robust line on anti-terrorism laws. He said yesterday he had "no problem at all" with plans to ban the "glorification of terrorism".

He has also echoed Charles Clarke, the Home Secretary, in saying that concerns about civil liberties must be put into this context. "A pretty important civil right is the civil right not to be blown up on the way to work," he said yesterday.

Israel’s embassy in London said comments made by London Mayor Ken Livingstone critical of Israel are “miserable and unnecessary.”

Livingstone said in a press conference on Tuesday that he does not distinguish between members of the Israeli ruling party Likud and the terror organization Hamas, and called them “two sides of the same coin.”

The embassy said the remarks were “miserable and unnecessary, especially coming from someone whose city was hit by terror attacks just over a week ago.”

The Israeli Foreign Ministry said, “We regret that the London mayor did not know to distinguish between murderous terrorists and those who are trying to protect innocent civilians from them.”

Livingstone said he will welcome members of the Israeli government if they come to London, but added, “I believe they have done terrible things bordering on crimes against humanity.”

Livingstone said Israel has indiscriminately killed men, women, and children in the West Bank and Gaza Strip for dozens of years.

This was the first time Livingstone had spoken at a press conference since the July 7 bombings that hit the London transport system, killing more than 50 people.

Livingstone said the situation between Israelis and Palestinians is unbalanced, and expressed understanding for the motivation of Palestinian suicide bombers. “Palestinians don't have jet fighters, they only have their bodies to use as weapons. In that unfair balance, that's what people use,” he said.

Livingstone has been criticized in the past for hosting controversial Muslim cleric Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qara’dawi who has voiced support for Palestinian suicide bombers and who has been outspoken against homosexuals.

Israel’s embassy in London said comments made by London Mayor Ken Livingstone critical of Israel are “miserable and unnecessary.”

I think I know just what these certain brits are mad about:

up untill now Israel was the MAIN target of Hizbollah Anger!

Europe, having supported the Khomeini Clan of Islamo-Fascism was happy about that, and kept piling up the interests from deals with such terrorists.

Today, the old policies are BACKFIRING on Europe itself.

Israel alone, is no longer the main target of islamo-fascists' criminal activities. (the reasons are complicated)

infact, Israel may not be the target of nuke attacks. it could very well be somewhere in EU.

how do I know this? I've asked ahmadinejad a question in his website, to which he answered if we attack israel, the palestinians will also die. besides we will not commit such disrespect to our holy land of "Quds".

think about that!

could it be that the ruling clan have had some change of hearts, and suddenly thinking:

the ones who occupied Iran, took the oil, suppressed us, divided our land, broke khouzestsan from Iran once, and still beating the drums of SEPARATION are certainly NOT IN ISRAEL.

I belive the separation of Khuzestan from Iran, and the fact that LONDON TV SHOW is broadcasting the SEPARATISTS' PROPAGANDA ... could be the reason behind recent attack.

infact, Israel may not be the target of nuke attacks. it could very well be somewhere in EU.

how do I know this? I've asked ahmadinejad a question in his website, to which he answered if we attack israel, the palestinians will also die. besides we will not commit such disrespect to our holy land of "Quds".

think about that!
------------------

I did, now perhaps you'll ask him why it is that he's willing to martyr his own people, but the Palestinians are somehow "special".

Besides, you really believe everything terrorists tell you?

In my opinion, the attitude expressed in Tehran has always been such that the Israeli's have no right to exist, and if the mullahs can't control the middle east, they are willing to destroy it, including any and all holy sites, cities etc that Israel "occupies"...I don't mean lands involved in UN resolutions, or the "roadmap" when I say "occupy", from the mullah's point of view, it means every square inch of land described as "Israel" on the map.

The EU is at risk, as well as all nations of the region, and the mainland US...that's a given.

So is Islam itself, but that's another thread topic already being discussed at length on this forum.